Russian

It was in Paris in the 1960s that I first tasted buckwheat blini. My friend Nanou took me to a tiny, chic Russian restaurant near the Champs- Élysées. Russians, many of them Jews, came to France at the end of the nineteenth century, not long before the Russian Revolution, and congregated in restaurants like this one. We ordered the elegantly presented blini, and ate them daintily with smoked salmon and crème fraîche. Twenty years after Nanou died, her son Édouard got married. The wedding party took place at Maxim’s, where we drank lots of champagne and danced until the wee hours of the morning. I was touched to taste blini with smoked salmon and crème fraîche, the same appetizer that Édouard’s mother and I had enjoyed so many years ago. For me, it was as though she were present at the wedding. This recipe was adapted from Lynn Visson’s The Russian Heritage Cookbook.

Borscht is one of those soups that has dozens of variations. This version of the classic Russian beet soup uses lots of vegetables and a touch of bacon for extra flavor. You can leave the bacon out and use vegetable broth if you prefer a vegetarian soup. Grating the beets into the soup releases maximum beet flavor. Though this recipe calls for the borscht to be served hot, it is also delicious when served cold.

A classic dish perfected. Ask your butcher to cut the meat from the shank into 3/4-inch cubes.

With sustainability in mind, we taste-tested a variety of domestic caviars. Trout roe had the pop and brininess we were looking for—and it was especially pretty.

Russian blinis traditionally call for yeast, but our mini-pancake version is blissfully easy. Use as much or as little caviar as you like, depending on how indulgent you're feeling.

This is a fantastic preparation for bone-in pork shoulder, which is loaded with flavor but needs braising to tenderize. A blend of ingredients commonly used in Eurasia's culinarily diverse Caucasus region (comprising Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and parts of Russia) brings together elements of heat, garlic, and spices like coriander and fenugreek.

We tweaked this Old World sweet-and-sour dish with confit duck, and the amazing result knocked us out.

The Russian version of pierogies, pirozhki are small turnovers that are baked rather than boiled. Their savory, rich mushroom-and-liver filling packs a big punch within a crisp little pastry.

In Russia and eastern Europe kasha is most often made into thick gruel. Instead, we turned the roasted buckwheat kernels into a fantastic side dish studded with butter-toasted walnuts and browned onion.

We couldn't improve much on traditional beef Stroganov, but we did decide to trade up: The usual small tenderloin pieces are replaced by whole steaks, which make for a more striking presentation on the plate.

Replacing this Czech dish's traditional pork stuffing with confit duck results in a much shorter cooking time without sacrificing any mouthwatering flavor.

Start this romantic supper with Russian caviar and ice-cold lemon vodka. The main course is a simplified but impressive interpretation of the Russian fish pie known as kulebiaka, which the French call coulibiac. Offer Champagne with the entrée, and finish the meal with babas au rhum from a French bakery to complete the cross-European elegance.

I like to use Yukon Gold potatoes for these blini because they absorb more cream than other potatoes and thus result in the best possible texture. This recipe will make extra batter, but it's a difficult recipe to reduce. The batter is best when used immediately, but it can be made up to two hours ahead if stored in a warm place (the cream may clot if it gets too cold). Use a scale to weigh the proper amount of potatoes after puréeing them, and make the batter while the potatoes are still warm or the blini will not have the correct texture.

(Buckwheat Yeast Pancakes with Three Caviars)

Inspired by the poppy seed breads made in many Russian homes, these cookies capture the traditional flavors without the time investment of making a yeast bread. You can substitute 1 cup walnuts (toasted, cooled, and finely chopped) for the poppy seeds if you prefer.

This dessert is based on an old-fashioned Russian kissel—traditionally a sweetened fruit purée thickened with potato starch, which gives it a puddinglike consistency. We've left the berries whole in order to achieve a more interesting look and texture and substituted cornstarch for the thickener as it's more readily available in the States.

Liptauer gained its name from the provenance of the fresh sheep's milk cheese with which it was originally made, Lipto, Hungary. Our version of this seasoned spread is made with cream cheese.

These pastries are best when freshly baked, so if you plan on giving them to someone who may not be able to serve them within a day or two, you should deliver them frozen, along with the baking instructions.

To make this borscht into a full meal, serve the butter-braised oysters as a starter, or vice versa.

Russian cheesecakes, like this one served at The Kaleenka in Seattle, are lighter and drier than most American versions. The texture comes from a dry-curd cheese (known here a hoop cheese) common to Russian cooking.